Like other crafts, jewelry was also well-developed there. “As long as at least one woman is alive on earth, the profession of a jeweler will not die,” as local craftsmen say.
Tumors (amulets) are a special type of jewelry. They were used to protect its owner from the evil eye. Amulets varied according to how they were worn, although their functions and purposes were the same – buyin-tumar (neck amulet), kukrak-tumar or kultik-tumar (armpit amulet) and so on. Items from this category of jewelry had a triangular, rectangular or cylindrical shape and had the forms of specific cases, in which a protective prayer written on a piece of paper was hidden. Women could use tumors for other purposes, e.g. putting medicinal or aromatic substances inside.
You can learn more about the topic in the book-album “The Collection of the Kokand State Museum-Reserve” (Volume XLIII) in the series “The Cultural Legacy of Uzbekistan in the World Collections”.
The main sponsor of the project is the oilfield services company Eriell-Group.
For what purpose did women use tumor amulets?
Kokand was a town located at the crossroads of the once multi-faceted Silk Road, which later became the capital of the Khanate of Kokand; therefore, it is no surprise that it was a major craft center.